Kit apparatus and method for decorating a body

ABSTRACT

The disclosed invention provides a kit apparatus for decorating a body with temporary body art that is reusable and visually dramatic. The kit apparatus includes a number of patterned transfer sheets having a plurality of releasable themed ornamental patterns thereon, a plurality of capsules containing one or more sprinkle-able decorative materials, a plurality of ornamental studs, and an instruction sheet. Each of the number of patterned transfer sheets includes a double-sided medical grade adhesive material sandwiched between two release liners and die cut into themed ornamental patterns suitable for placement on the human body. The sprinkle-able decorative materials include one or a combination of colored sand, colored cosmetic grade glitter, or glow-in-the-dark powder. Each of the plurality of ornamental studs may include any one or more of metal spikes, metal studs, and pseudo-jewels, colored or otherwise, having a flat back surface for optimal adherence to the adhesive material.

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

This invention is directed to body art, and more particularly, to a kitapparatus and method for decorating a body.

BACKGROUND

Body art used to enhance one's appearance has been known for centuries.Such body art traditionally included permanent tattoos, impervious towashing, surface abrasion, and time. The expense, time and painassociated with acquiring and removing a permanent tattoo, however havedissuaded some people desiring body art from obtaining a permanenttattoo. One prior art solution to the problem of “permanence” associatedwith permanent tattoos is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,192,890 to Levyet al ('890). The '890 patent discloses injecting a selected area of theskin with microspheres, which when exposed to a controlled electricalfield can be oriented to provide a multi-colored tattoo. The tattoo canthen be changed by re-exposing the microspheres to the controlledelectrical field. Although such a tattoo may be non-permanent, there isexpense, time and pain associated with its acquisition and removal.

Recently, non-permanent body art such as washable skin tattoos orwearing apparel creating an illusion of a body tattoo, have gainedpopularity. One example of a method for creating an illusion of anapparel wearer having a body tattoo is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No.6,526,589 to Jeziak et al. Unfortunately, the method disclosed in theJeziak et al. patent yields wearing apparel which gives an illusion thatthe wearer is wearing torn clothing exposing a tattoo on the wearer'sskin in the area of the tear. Such a “torn look” however, may not besuitable for many people desiring non-permanent body art. In addition,although suitable for short term wear, washable skin tattoos arerestricted in their appearance to simple forms with limited colorselections.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides a kit apparatus for decorating a humanbody with temporary body art that is reusable and visually dramatic. Thekit apparatus includes a number of patterned transfer sheets having aplurality of releasable themed ornamental patterns thereon, a pluralityof capsules containing one or more sprinkle-able decorative materials, aplurality of ornamental studs, and an instruction sheet. Each of thenumber of patterned transfer sheets includes a double-sided medicalgrade adhesive material sandwiched between two release liners and diecut into themed ornamental patterns suitable for placement on the humanbody. The sprinkle-able decorative materials include one of coloredsand, colored cosmetic grade glitter, or glow-in-the-dark powder. Eachof the plurality of ornamental studs may include any one of metalspikes, metal studs, and pseudo-jewels having a flat back surface foroptimal adherence to the adhesive material. The instruction sheetincludes written and visual instructions on how to prepare the themedornamental patterns to form the temporary body art.

The present invention also includes a method for preparing the themedornamental patterns in the kit apparatus to form the temporary body art.The method includes removing, by peeling, one of the plurality ofreleasable themed ornamental patterns from the patterned transfer sheet;optionally applying one or more of the ornamental studs to the exposedadhesive side of releasable themed ornamental pattern; optionallyapplying one or more of the sprinkle-able decorative materials to theexposed adhesive side of releasable themed ornamental pattern; peeling abacking off of the one of the plurality of releasable themed ornamentalpatterns to form the temporary body art; and affixing the temporary bodyart to the human body.

Additional aspects of the invention will be apparent to those ofordinary skill in the art in view of the detailed description of variousembodiments, which is made with reference to the drawings, a briefdescription of which is provided below.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 a block diagram of a kit apparatus or assembly for decorating ahuman body with temporary body art that is reusable and visuallydramatic in accordance with the invention.

FIG. 2 is an exemplary patterned transfer sheet that may be included inthe kit apparatus of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is another exemplary patterned transfer sheet that may beincluded in the kit apparatus of FIG. 1.

FIGS. 4-6 illustrate a method for preparing and affixing the releasablethemed ornamental patterns of the kit apparatus of FIG. 1 to form thetemporary body art in accordance with the invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EXAMPLE

The description of the preferred examples is to be construed asexemplary only and does not describe every possible embodiment of theinvention. Numerous alternative embodiments could be implemented, usingeither current technology or technology developed after the filing dateof this patent, which would still fall within the scope of the claimsdefining the invention.

In general, the present invention provides a kit apparatus and methodfor decorating a human body with temporary body art that is reusable andvisually dramatic. The kit apparatus provides an all-inclusive assemblyof components necessary to create visually dramatic and inexpensivetemporary body art, and therefore includes a number of patternedtransfer sheets having a plurality of releasable themed ornamentalpatterns thereon, a plurality of capsules containing one or moresprinkle-able decorative materials, a plurality of ornamental studs, andan instruction sheet. Each of the number of patterned transfer sheetsincludes a double-sided medical grade adhesive material sandwichedbetween two release liners and die cut into themed ornamental patternssuitable for placement on the human body. The sprinkle-able decorativematerials include one or a combination of colored sand, colored cosmeticgrade glitter, or glow-in-the-dark powder. Each of the plurality ofornamental studs may include any one or more of metal spikes, metalstuds, and pseudo-jewels, colored or otherwise, having a flat backsurface for optimal adherence to the adhesive material. The instructionsheet includes written and visual instructions on how to prepare thethemed ornamental patterns to form the temporary body art.

The present invention also includes a method for preparing the themedornamental patterns in the kit apparatus to form the temporary body art.The method includes removing, by peeling, one of the plurality ofreleasable themed ornamental patterns from the patterned transfer sheet;optionally applying one or more of the ornamental studs to the exposedadhesive side of releasable themed ornamental pattern; optionallyapplying one or more of the sprinkle-able decorative materials to theexposed adhesive side of releasable themed ornamental pattern; peeling abacking off of the one of the plurality of releasable themed ornamentalpatterns to form the temporary body art; and affixing the temporary bodyart to the human body.

The description of the preferred examples is to be construed asexemplary only and does not describe every possible embodiment of theinvention. Numerous alternative embodiments could be implemented, usingeither current technology or technology developed after the filing dateof this patent, which would still fall within the scope of the claimsdefining the invention.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a kit apparatus or assembly 10 fordecorating a human body with temporary body art that is reusable andvisually dramatic in accordance with the invention. Referring to FIG. 1,the kit apparatus 10 is preferably configured for ease of display andshipment and includes a display box frame 12 having a transparentportion 14 thereon and a box flap 16. The transparent portion 14 may beconstructed of any suitable lightweight transparent material (e.g.,clear plastic material). Although the box flap 16 is preferablyintegrally formed on the display box frame 12 it is contemplated thatthe box flap 16 may be coupled to the display box frame 12 in one of anynumber of ways to allow the contents of the kit apparatus 10 to beviewed via the transparent portion 14 when the box flap 16 is lifted toan open position. The box flap 16 visually displays a body art theme ofthe kit apparatus 10 (e.g., glitterotica™, glitterHEAD™, glitterGIRL™,MetaLART™, Tattoo Parlor Valentine's Day™, Tattoo Parlor Christmas™,Tatto Parlor Birthday™, etc.) when in a closed position.

The kit apparatus 10 also includes a number of patterned transfer sheets18 having a plurality of releasable themed ornamental patterns 20thereon, a plurality of capsules 22 containing one or more sprinkle-abledecorative materials, a plurality of ornamental studs 24, and aninstruction sheet (not shown). The instruction sheet, having a frontside and a backside, is preferably placed on top of the number ofpatterned transfer sheets 18. When the box flap 16 is in the openposition, the front side of the instruction sheet visually displays (viathe transparent portion 14) the themed ornamental patterns 20 includedin the kit apparatus 10. The backside of the instruction sheet includesinstructions for preparing the releasable themed ornamental patterns 20to form the temporary body art, and for affixing the temporary body art.Although preferably included under the transparent portion 14 with thenumber of patterned transfer sheets 18, it is contemplated that theinstructions for preparing and affixing may be printed directly on thedisplay box frame 12.

Each of the number of patterned transfer sheets 18 is configured with adouble-sided medical grade FDA approved adhesive material sandwichedbetween two release liners. Thus, each of the number of patternedtransfer sheets 18, available from 3M Corporation headquartered in St.Paul Minn., has a top release liner layer, double-sided adhesivematerial layer and a bottom release liner layer. Each of the number ofpatterned transfer sheets 18 are die cut to produce the plurality ofreleasable themed ornamental patterns 20. A first die cut through thetop release liner layer and the double-sided adhesive material layercreates the themed ornamental patterns. A second die cut through the toprelease liner layer creates a number of “score lines” that enable easyremoval of the prepared themed ornamental patterns from the top releaseliner layer. A method for (1) removing the themed ornamental patternsfrom the bottom release liner layer, (2) preparing the themed ornamentalpatterns, and (3) removing the prepared themed ornamental patterns fromthe top release liner layer is described in connection with FIG. 4.

Referring again to FIG. 1, the transparent portion 14 preferablyincludes a transparent raised chamber 26, which may or may not beintegrally formed in the transparent portion 14, to allow for placementand viewing of the plurality of capsules 22 and the plurality ofornamental studs 24. Although each of the plurality of capsules 22included in the kit apparatus 10 is double-zero sized and transparent,it is contemplated that other types and sizes of capsule may be usedincluded in the kit apparatus 10. In addition, although the kitapparatus 10 preferably utilizes capsules, it is contemplated that othermeans may be implemented to hold the sprinkle-able decorative materialswithin the kit apparatus 10.

As previously mentioned, each of the plurality of capsules contains oneor more sprinkle-able decorative materials. The sprinkle-able decorativematerials may include colored sand, colored cosmetic grade glitter,glow-in-the-dark powder or any other sprinkle-able decorative materialsuitable for adherence to the plurality of releasable themed ornamentalpatterns 20. For example, the sprinkle-able decorative material may be a0.015 hex sized cosmetic grade red glitter available from MeadowbrookInventions, Inc. In another example, the sprinkle-able decorativematerial may be a zinc sulfide based glow-in-the-dark material or aPermaglow™ material available from Hirotech, Inc.

Each of the plurality of ornamental studs 24 may include any one or moreof metal spikes, metal studs, and pseudo-jewels having a size and flatback surface suitable for adherence to the plurality of releasablethemed ornamental patterns 20. For example, a glitterotica™ themed kitmay include a number of 7 mm-sized pseudo-jewels having a rounded topportion and a flat bottom portion. Similarly, the glitterotica™ may alsoinclude a number of 5 mm-sized metal studs having a pyramid shaped topportion and a flat bottom portion.

As mentioned above, the themes (e.g., glitterotica™, glitterHEAD™,glitterGIRL™, etc.) and therefore the images and shapes of the temporarybody art provided by the kit apparatus 10 may be selected from among asubstantially vast array of subject matter to appeal to targetaudiences. For example, the kit apparatus of FIG. 1 provides “patriotic”releasable themed ornamental patterns 20 (e.g., a star, the word “USA”,etc.) which, when prepared, may be worn by a person celebrating theFourth of July. Similarly, the exemplary patterned transfer sheet 30 ofFIG. 2 provides “flirtatious” releasable themed ornamental patterns 20(e.g., lips, the word “sexy”, a bracelet or choker, a star, etc.) that,when prepared, may be worn by persons wanting to project a flirtatiousand fun image at a party. FIG. 3 is another exemplary patterned transfersheet 40 providing “strategically shaped” releasable themed ornamentalpatterns 20 that, when prepared, may be worn on a woman's breast as aclothing substitute to project a sexy image.

The contents of the kit apparatus 10 may vary, depending on the theme.For example, the kit apparatus 10 having a GlitterCHICK™ theme mayinclude patterned transfer sheets 18 having ornamental designs andwords, glitter in the capsules 22 and pseudo-jewels. In another example,the kit apparatus 10 having a MetalEROTICA™ breast art theme may includepatterned transfer sheets 18 having breast designs such as a circle, astar, a triangle, a daisy, a heart, an “X”, colored sand in the capsules22, metal spikes and studs.

In addition, although the components of the kit apparatus 10 are groupedtogether to form a “kit” that is an all-inclusive assembly of componentsnecessary to create the visually dramatic body art, it is contemplatedthat the individual components such as the glitter in capsules 22, theornamental studs 24, and the releasable themed ornamental patterns 20may be individually selected and combined by a wearer. For example, awearer may desire to purchase the capsules 22 containingglow-in-the-dark powder, and to purchase Halloween themed patternedtransfer sheets 18 to create their own Halloween themed tattoos. Such a“temporary tattoo parlor” selling the individual components of the kitapparatus 10 may be located in a theme park, in a children's museum,etc.

FIGS. 4-6 illustrate a method for preparing and affixing the releasablethemed ornamental patterns 20 to form the temporary body art inaccordance with the invention. Referring to FIG. 4, the method includesremoving by peeling one of the releasable themed ornamental patterns 20from the bottom release liner layer of the patterned transfer sheet 18.Next the releasable themed ornamental pattern 20 is prepared (see, FIGS.5 and 6). Preparation of the releasable themed ornamental pattern 20 maybe executed in one of a number of different ways, depending on thewearer's preference and the kit's contents. For example, metal studs maybe affixed to, and colored sand may be sprinkled upon, the exposedadhesive side of the releasable themed ornamental pattern 20.Alternatively, pseudo-jewels may be affixed to, and red glitter may besprinkled upon, the exposed adhesive side of the releasable themedornamental pattern 20.

Upon completion of the preparation step, the wearer removes the preparedreleasable themed ornamental pattern from the top release liner layer.In other words, the wearer peels the backing (i.e, the top release linerlayer) from the prepared releasable themed ornamental pattern. Next, thewearer affixes the prepared releasable themed ornamental pattern to aselected location on their body. Preparation and affixing the temporarybody art is now complete. As was previously mentioned, the temporarybody can be then be removed and re-affixed if the wearer so desires.

FIGS. 5 and 6 illustrate two examples of the preparation and affixingsteps described above. In one example, the wearer prepares aheart-shaped releasable themed ornamental pattern and affixes theresulting heart shaped temporary body art to her leg. In anotherexample, the wearer prepares a lightening-bolt releasable themedornamental pattern and affixes the resulting lightening-bolt temporarybody art to his arm. Further, although not separately illustrated, thetemporary body art described above may be combined with other body artforms such as latex adhesive body paints.

As may be apparent from the discussion above, the kit apparatus 10provides an all-inclusive assembly of components necessary to createvisually dramatic and inexpensive body art. Other advantages of theinvention may be further apparent to those of skill in the art.

From the foregoing, it will be observed that numerous variations andmodifications may be affected without departing from the scope of thenovel concept of the invention. It is to be understood that nolimitations with respect to the specific methods and apparatusillustrated herein is intended or should be inferred. It is, of course,intended to cover by the appended claims all such modifications as fallwithin the scope of the claims.

1. A kit apparatus for decorating a human body comprising: a patternedtransfer sheet having a plurality of releasable themed ornamentalpatterns thereon; and a plurality of capsules containing one or moresprinkle-able decorative materials.
 2. The kit apparatus of claim 1,further comprising a plurality of ornamental studs.
 3. The kit apparatusof claim 2, wherein the plurality of ornamental studs is selected fromthe group consisting of metal spikes having a flat back surface, metalstuds having a flat back surface, and pseudo-jewels having a flat backsurface.
 4. The kit apparatus of claim 1, further comprising aninstruction sheet.
 5. The kit apparatus of claim 1, wherein thepatterned transfer sheet further comprises a double-sided medical gradeadhesive material sandwiched between two release liners.
 6. The kitapparatus of claim 5, wherein the patterned transfer sheet is die cut toform the plurality of releasable themed ornamental patterns.
 7. The kitapparatus of claim 6, wherein the plurality of releasable themedornamental pattern comprise geometric shapes.
 8. The kit apparatus ofclaim 6, wherein the plurality of releasable themed ornamental patterncomprise holiday themed shapes.
 9. The kit apparatus of claim 6, whereinthe plurality of releasable themed ornamental pattern comprise eroticthemed shapes.
 10. The kit apparatus of claim 1, wherein thesprinkle-able decorative material is selected from the group consistingof colored sand, colored cosmetic grade glitter, and glow-in-the-darkpowder.
 11. A method for forming temporary body art, the methodcomprising: peeling one of a plurality of releasable themed ornamentalpatterns from a patterned transfer sheet, each of the plurality ofreleasable themed ornamental patterns having a first exposed adhesiveside and a backing side; applying a sprinkle-able decorative material tothe first exposed adhesive side of the releasable themed ornamentalpattern; peeling a backing off of the backing side of the releasablethemed ornamental pattern to form temporary body art having a secondexposed adhesive side; and affixing the second exposed adhesive side ofthe temporary body art to the human body.
 12. The method of claim 11,wherein the wherein the sprinkle-able decorative material is selectedfrom the group consisting of colored sand, colored cosmetic gradeglitter, and glow-in-the-dark powder.
 13. The method of claim 11 furthercomprising applying an ornamental stud to the first exposed adhesiveside of the releasable themed ornamental pattern.
 14. The method ofclaim 13, wherein the wherein the ornamental stud is selected from thegroup consisting of metal spikes having a flat back surface, metal studshaving a flat back surface, and pseudo-jewels having a flat backsurface.
 15. The method of claim 11, wherein the patterned transfersheet further comprises a double-sided medical grade adhesive materialsandwiched between two release liners.
 16. The method of claim 15,wherein the patterned transfer sheet is die cut to form the plurality ofreleasable themed ornamental patterns.
 17. The method of claim 16,wherein the plurality of releasable themed ornamental pattern comprisegeometric shapes.
 18. The method of claim 16, wherein the plurality ofreleasable themed ornamental pattern comprise holiday themed shapes. 19.The method of claim 16, wherein the plurality of releasable themedornamental pattern comprise erotic themed shapes.